Wisconsin Winter Tornadoes

Started by ♠SARKID♠, January 12, 2008, 12:39:04 AM

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

♠SARKID♠

I don't think I ever let out a more profound "WTF?" than when I heard that there were tornadoes, in January, in Wisconsin, about an hour south of where I live.

http://www.cap.gov/index.cfm?fuseaction=display&nodeID=6192&newsID=3900&year=2008&month=1

Bravo to the aircrews for getting some good SDIS shots.

Eclipse

http://www.crh.noaa.gov/lot/?n=20080107tor

The below photos are the product of the ILWG sortie on the initial storm track (a graphic of the track is on the NOAA page above, along with photos from NOAA ground assessment teams).

The surgical nature of a tornado (vs. a hurricane) is amazing to see. 1 structure flat, 1 seemingly untouched, right next to each other.

It was also interesting to see the actual track mark from the touchdown point. In some areas there is literally a visible line on the ground where the storm tracked. 

I have Garmin tracks of our flight path and the photo orbits we did and they are basically identical to the track posted on the link above, with nothing hurt on either side - granted, this is rural real-world farm country, so (thankfully) there were not many buildings around.













(We were waiting on posting anything until NOAA gave the ok, these photos remain NOAA property, but since they are posted on a public web page, I don't see any issue with linking them here.)


I've done a lot of photo work, both training and real-world, but this was my first time rear-seat in the 182 with the rear window hatch. While it did allow for me to stick the lens out the window, it didn't make much difference clarity-wise (the haze is atmospheric, not the window).

I normally shoot with a Nikon 5700 (5Megapixels, 8x optical), however the CCD on it went INOP just before
Christmas, and I used a borrowed Canon Rebel 300D with a 70-300mm AF lens.  I can only say I've been doing this for a while and the camera was perfectly suited to the job. (it will be mine, it will be mine).   ;D

I shot in excess of 150 photos in high-speed mode the whole time.  the camera kept up with almost continuous use for an hour on one battery, and write speeds were a non-issue to the card flash.  The longer manual-zoom/autofocus lens meant I could zoom in and out quick but the camera did the heavy lifting of the  balances, focus, etc.

The pilot and I are experienced working together, and I can tell you it makes a difference.
Yes, this was a blast.  I love stuff like this - real world, a little performance pressure and everyone working as a team.  Its why I joined CAP!


"That Others May Zoom"